Ancient History & Civilisation

Lost to the West: The Forgotten Byzantine Empire That Rescued Western Civilization

Lost to the West: The Forgotten Byzantine Empire That Rescued Western Civilization

Filled with unforgettable stories of emperors, generals, and religious patriarchs, as well as fascinating glimpses into the life of the ordinary citizen, Lost to the West reveals how much we owe to the Byzantine Empire that was the equal of any in its achievements, appetites, and enduring legacy.

For more than a millennium, Byzantium reigned as the glittering seat of Christian civilization. When Europe fell into the Dark Ages, Byzantium held fast against Muslim expansion, keeping Christianity alive.  Streams of wealth flowed into Constantinople, making possible unprecedented wonders of art and architecture. And the emperors who ruled Byzantium enacted a saga of political intrigue and conquest as astonishing as anything in recorded history.

Lost to the West
is replete with stories of assassination, mass mutilation and execution, sexual scheming, ruthless grasping for power, and clashing armies that soaked battlefields with the blood of slain warriors numbering in the tens of thousands.

Introduction

Prologue: Roman Roots

Chapter 1. Diocletian’s Revolution

Chapter 2. Constantine and the Church Ascendant

Chapter 3. The Pagan Counterstroke

Chapter 4. Barbarians and Christians

Chapter 5. A Dreadful Rumor from the West…

Chapter 6. The Fall of Rome

Chapter 7. The Rise of Peter Sabbatius

Chapter 8. Nika!

Chapter 9. Of Buildings and Generals

Chapter 10. Yersinia Pestis

Chapter 11. A Persian Fire

Chapter 12. The House of War

Chapter 13. The Image Breakers

Chapter 14. The Crumbling Empire

Chapter 15. The Turning Tide

Chapter 16. The Glorious House of Macedon

Chapter 17. The Brilliant Pretender

Chapter 18. Death and His Nephew

Chapter 19. Basil the Bulgar Slayer

Chapter 20. The March of Folly

Chapter 21. The Comneni Recovery

Chapter 22. Swords That Drip with Christian Blood

Chapter 23. The Empire in Exile

Chapter 24. The Brilliant Sunset

Chapter 25. The Eternal Emperor

Epilogue: Byzantine Embers

Selected Bibliography

Appendix: Emperors of Constantinople

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